When you write

Take the time to look around. There’s a full life in between every breath you take. It takes only an instant for a match to flare and gift you with sulfur; a moment for a brick to fall and crash and shatter; less than a second to realize that he’s not worth the trouble of one more breath.

Think. What does it feel like when you know you can’t take one more step with that bastard beside you? What does it smell like when you’re sitting with your best friend in a coffee shop, crying over burnt hot chocolate? Did you hear anything when the last nail was pounded into the coffin of your relationship?

Use your senses when you write. Readers need a sense of place. They want to know about how good that cheesecake tastes – thick and creamy, with a chocolate crust. They want to hear the slap, when you cross his cheek with your palm. Hell, they even want to know what victory – or defeat – smells like, if you can just figure out how to put it into words. Give your readers a sense of place and time.